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WINTER WAS ALMOST OVER now and spring would be here soon. Sorcha rode in a carriage towards the Vampire District. With the scent nullifying spell around her, she didn’t need to be concerned about becoming prey. None of the bloodsuckers would know she was a living being, unless they got close enough to her to hear her heartbeat.
Her latest target wasn’t a master this time. He lived in a suburb of modest stone and brick houses, so he couldn’t have much power or influence. The leech must have done something to annoy Lord Kreaton, or so she assumed. It didn’t matter who had sent her on this job. All that mattered was that she followed her orders and eliminated her mark.
Sorcha had the skeleton drop her off a couple of blocks away from the address she’d been given. The link in her head indicated he was home, so she followed it to his dwelling place. She sent her magic out and it picked up on five vamps in the house. She couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but they were all huddled together in one room.
The sorceress circled the block to examine the house from behind. A stone wall hid most of her view of the property. If she attempted to scale it, the undead would hear her. Her brows furrowed when a thought occurred to her. She almost slapped herself upside the head for not thinking of it sooner. While she’d figured out how to mask her scent, it hadn’t occurred to her to craft a spell that could mask all noise she made as well. “You idiot,” she murmured in disgust.
She stood next to the wall and camouflaged herself so no one could see her from the nearby buildings, then concentrated. Utilizing her innate magic, Sorcha altered the spell that surrounded her to muffle her noise as well as her scent. She walked a few steps to test it and didn’t hear her footsteps. “Why didn’t you figure this out a decade ago, dummy?” she said in exasperation, but the words were also nullified. “This is definitely going to come in handy,” she said. The shield allowed her to hear everything except herself, so it was perfect for her needs.
With the camouflage spell still in place, Sorcha hauled herself over the wall and dropped into a crouch on the other side. The windows were shuttered to keep the sun out during the day, but light from a crack beckoned her closer. She crossed to the window to see a formal dining room. The table was empty, but dried blood was pooled on its surface. “I guess this must be their maid’s year off,” she said with a grimace.
A leech walked into the room and came to a stop next to the table. The spell in her head became even more insistent, indicating that he was her target. He was a master, but he was weak in power. His face was gaunt and his skin was sallow. Closing his eyes, he called up some of his energy and used it to conjure up a couple of glasses of blood. “Come, my children,” he said. “Drink, before the blood cools.”
His fledglings hurried into the room and took turns sipping from the glasses. Their master watched them with hollow eyes and Sorcha felt a stab of pity for them. The energy they’d received from the scant meal wouldn’t last long.
Her target stood with his back to her. The spell in her head made him stand out like a beacon. Sorcha touched the window and sent a shard of fire through the glass. Her mark jerked when the invisible spell sliced through his heart, then he fell down dead.
She teleported away the moment the spell in her head stopped prodding at her mind. Appearing in an empty alley, she discovered a flaw in the new spell she’d cast. Teleporting had nullified it and her scent and sound were no longer masked. A demon was lurking in the shadows and sniffed the air. It was a few inches shorter than her and had muddy brown skin and small, useless wings. “Assassin!” it hissed in recognition and its tail whipped towards her. She leaped back to avoid being skewered, then turned and fled. As always, she was wearing an illusion, but her scent was still recognizable. The creature hadn’t witnessed her teleporting to the alley, so at least her ability hadn’t been discovered.
Sorcha cast the noise and scent muffling spell again as she sprinted away. The demon was fast and it was right on her heels. It was her bad luck that she’d run into one of the scouts that had memorized her scent. The horrible thing was intent on getting revenge for the hell spawn she’d murdered just before Halloween. “Get over it already,” she muttered as she sped through the dark alleys and side streets.
When the sorceress risked a glance over her shoulder, she saw another demon had joined the hunt. It was bigger and slower than the scout, but it was just as eager to spill her blood. Sorcha knew the Vampire District well enough to head for a place that would hopefully offer her sanctuary. She cut through one of the snow-covered, overgrown parks and headed for an old gothic church.
“Get her!” the scout snarled as more of its kind appeared. “Don’t let her enter the church grounds!”
Sorcha put on a burst of speed and tossed a small fireball at a hideous demon that lunged at her. It was enough to blind the creature momentarily, but there were plenty more of them right behind him. She reached the old stone wall of the church grounds and leaped over it.
Vile curses rang out from behind her as she shoved a side door open and stepped into the building. “Whew, that was too close!” she said in relief that she’d made it to safety. She glanced at the throng of furious monsters that couldn’t step foot on hallowed ground, then closed the door.
For a few moments, she sagged against the door to calm her racing heart, then she teleported to the City Square. She appeared in an alley that was far cleaner than the ones in the Vampire District and hurried towards her home. She turned a corner and ran into someone. “Sorry!” she exclaimed and staggered back a step from the muscular body she’d collided with.
“It was my fault,” the man said as she focused and saw his dark red cloak. His voice was deep and velvety. She looked up directly into amethyst eyes and froze. It was the courier and he was staring at her as if she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. It was more proof that he could see through her glamor.
“Who are you?” she blurted.
“My name is Kade Sinclair, my lady,” he said and bowed without breaking eye contact. He seemed just as fascinated with her as she was with him.
“Courier!” someone called out in an annoyed tone, breaking them from their spell before he could ask her what her name was. Sorcha was glad to be snapped back to reality. The wizard was far too handsome. He was a distraction she didn’t need right now.
“Yes, sir?” Kade asked as a high-ranking member of the Magic Guild reached him.
“I need you to deliver this parcel,” the guildmember said, recognizing him as a lackey of their guild.
Sorcha slipped away as a package was thrust at the courier. She didn’t think to test how strong the snobby elf was until she was half a block away. She paused to send out her senses and picked up that he had strong magic straight away. The sorceress withdrew her senses before the elf could feel her. Following her instincts, she cast a tiny spell and sent it zooming over to him. It clung to his trousers, invisible and undetectable except to her. It was a magical tracking device, similar to the spell that linked her to her targets. She would be able to follow it to him, so she could approach him about helping her break her bond to the Immortal Triumvirate.
The courier was watching her as the elf gave him instructions about the package. He nodded as if he was listening, but she sensed that his attention was completely on her. Feeling flustered, Sorcha took a circuitous route home to make sure she wasn’t being followed. As far as she knew, demons couldn’t teleport, so it was doubtful they could have tracked her to the City Square. It helped that she could now hide her scent. Still, it paid to be vigilant. If she grew sloppy, she would be the one who would end up being eliminated.
